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30,000 Year Old Virus Revived

posted by girlwhowaspluggedout on Tuesday March 04 2014, @02:00AM   Printer-friendly
from the but-does-it-still-taste-fresh dept.

hubie writes:

"A group at the Institut de Microbiologie de la Mediterranee, Aix Marseille Universite, revived a "giant" virus that had been embedded in permafrost for approximately 30,000 years. The virus was found in the tundra near East Siberia and is thus named Pithovirus sibericum. It is the latest entry in the class of large viruses called Megaviridae, which are so large that they are visible under an ordinary optical microscope:

P. sibericum is, on the scale of viruses, a giant - it has 500 genes, whereas the influenza virus has only eight.

This particular virus is harmless to humans and animals, but it demonstrates there could be unknown health repercussions as more permafrost thaws as the result of a warming planet."

 
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  • (Score: 1) by cykros on Tuesday March 04 2014, @12:56PM

    by cykros (989) on Tuesday March 04 2014, @12:56PM (#10747)

    And perhaps the sabre tooth tigers. And you know, the other animals that might be affected by this virus.

    While I'm generally okay with various measures that'd also combat theoretical climate change (other than carbon taxes...sheesh), it's shit like this this that has turned it into a laughing stock.

    All agendas aside, I'm curious to see if this gives us a better understanding of the evolution of virii over the millenia, and perhaps some other insights into the time period at the microscopic (or not so microscopic) level.